


Desert  Nightmare

by UncannyPrincess



Category: Ultimate Spider-Man (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Minor Character Death, Underage Drug Use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-29
Updated: 2016-10-26
Packaged: 2018-08-18 12:28:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 16,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8162060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UncannyPrincess/pseuds/UncannyPrincess
Summary: After a fatal incident occurs on a field trip peter and the gang end up in the desert with no cellphone connection and limited supply the gang are in dire straights after stumbling across a small town the gang soon find out things aren't as they seem. As they struggle to survive in the desert as well as what lurks inside it.





	1. Cheaters  never win.

Peter's p.o.v  
I awoke to the sounds of my best friend Harry snoring. Groaning, I flipped on my side, and took a quick glance at my phone. It was only 5:00 a.m. I sighed. Today was the big field trip to the new aquarium called Sea Land. Everyone was excited about it. I wasn't much into nature, (mostly because it keeps on trying to kill me), I thought, but Gwen and Harry wanted me to go along with the others. Aunt May let me stay the night with Harry. We stayed up until 11 at night but Harry's dad made us go to bed. We were in the middle of an intense game of Mario kart and harry and I were tied. We were so close to the finish line too! Oh well. I can always chill with Harry over the summer. He's my best friend, and I felt bad for not spending time with him. Lately, he's been pretty stressed since the finals are coming up, and he's been kind of out of it ever since.

My stomach growled, snapping me out of my thoughts. I know it's early in the morning, but I only had 2 hours to sleep left, and plus I'm feeling kind of hungry. (A little midnight snack wouldn't hurt anyone,) I thought to myself, quietly getting out of my sleeping bag. I cracked the door open just a bit, and went out, careful not to wake Harry or Mr. Norman up. I then headed to the kitchen. The fridge was in plain sight. Trying my best not to be loud, I crept over, trying not to alert anyone.

Suddenly, the lights flipped on. "Peter, up so early? I didn't know you were an early bird. My boy, that's a remarkable quality. I only wish Harry had it," Norman said, walking up to me. He wore a blue robe made from Egyptian cotton, and some very expensive silk robes.

"Um… well, I… ugh…." I trailed off, trying not to stutter.

Mr. Osborne just chuckled and pulled up a seat next to the dining table. "Peter, while you're up, why not have some breakfast with me? I'd appreciate it if you did," he said. I tried to refuse, but he insisted.

A tired looking maid-servant served us up some bacon, sausages, and eggs, complete with the most fresh and best tasting orange juice I've ever had. It was nice and cool. I awkwardly stuffed scrambled eggs silently into my mouth while Norman watched me, his eyes a deep piercing blue burning through me like hot coals on a flame. "So I heard you got a four A+ in each of your classes. Absolutely remarkable… You see, Harry, he got only C's in his classes, and Peter, I just can't accept that he's slacking around, just not doing his best. It simply won't do. I can't have a bad influence like my son around you. I feel it's time to let you know that you should be the heir to Oscorp," Norman said, smoothing out his hair.

I suddenly start choking. He quickly patted me on the back. "Mr. Osborne, I can't. He's my best friend, and your son. That's wrong…" Before I could finish, he cut me off. "No that isn't possible. Harry is a failure, an accident waiting to happen, a mistake."

I was shocked. Norman truly didn't care for his son. Suddenly, we heard footsteps upstairs. Harry must have been eavesdropping, and heard everything. The bedroom door slammed shut. "Harry, I'm so sorry! I'm not trying to take your place, I swear!" Getting up, I quickly go after him.

"Leave him be, Peter. He's just throwing a temper tantrum," Norman said, indifferent to his son's suffering. He drank his orange juice, and started reading some paper that was sitting on the table.

I tried to go after Harry, but he'd locked the door. "Harry. Please open up," I muttered. I tried banging on the door, but he ignores my knocking. Looking around, I dug in the drawer nearby, and found some wire. I quickly picked the lock, hearing the satisfying click of the door as it unlocked. Opening the door, my mouth dropped. The window was open, but Harry is missing. "Oh, man. Where did he go?" I muttered to myself. The city is dangerous, and he could get himself killed. I tried to call the team, but no one was answering. I sighed. Things couldn't get any worse than this.

Meanwhile

Harry's p.o.v

The sun started to rise. I didn't care that I was still in my pajamas. (Stupid Peter. If Dad loves him so much, why not just adopt Parker and make him his son, instead? No matter how hard I tried, nothing ever pleased my dad. I wish at times I was never born, then my dad wouldn't be so ashamed of me,) I thought to myself.

A stray dog near the garbage cans noticed me walking, and came up to me. The dog looked to be in horrible shape. He had patches of missing fur on his body, and he was scrawny and dirty. He barked at me in a non-hostile way and whimpered. I actually felt sorry for him. "Sorry, but I don't have any food for you," I said to the stray mutt.

The dog gave off a sad whine. I sighed. Digging in my bag I brought along, I felt something rattling around in the back pocket. Pulling it out, I soon found that it was some beef jerky I had bought yesterday but totally forgot to eat. The dog noticed the snack, got on his hind legs, and begged for it.

"Here you go, boy. It's not much, but eat up," I said, unwrapping the jerky and tossing it on the ground. The dog ate it, greedily savoring the flavor. After that, the dog went on about his business. Luke's apartment was nearby. Maybe he would let me stay for a few hours. I didn't want to go home, especially when Peter and my dad were there. It was only 3 blocks, which wasn't that far. Hopefully, he's not a heavy sleeper.

*30 minutes later*

Arriving at Luke's apartment, I knocked on the door. I heard someone talking inside, but it wasn't Luke. The door suddenly swung open. Some messy haired brunette boy around my age was eating a breakfast sandwich. I didn't know how he could even see with all that hair in his face, but really it wasn't any of my business. It wasn't my face, so I didn't care.

"Ummmmm….. Is Luke Cage here?" I asked, wondering why this guy was even in his house.

The boy didn't even bother to finish chewing his food, nonetheless swallow his freaking food. Yelling at the top of his lungs, he screamed inside, "HEY LUKE! SOME REDHEAD IS HERE TO SEE YOU!" He shouted.

Bits of egg and bacon hit my face. (Great, just great. Just what I needed: a breakfast sandwich facial,) I thought, wiping my face off, disgusted by the other male's table manners, plus his behavior, period.

Luke came to the door. "Hey, Harry, how's it going?" Luke asked cheerfully. He seemed to be in good spirits today. Well, good for him I guess…

"Hey Luke, mind if I stay here until school starts? Something happened back at home," I asked.

Luke nodded his head in understanding. "Sure, man. It's fine. By the way, sorry about my roommate, Alex. He's a bit of a stoner. Please forgive him for earlier. Plus, he tends to chew with his mouth open," Luke replied.

"I see," I said. Alex was busy digging in the fridge. He pulled out a grape soda before tossing the strawberry ones at me and Luke. I was so happy I was paying attention because he almost busted me in the mouth with the soda can. I do not need stitches in the lip area especially on today.

My dad would never let me live it down. I could almost hear the sound of disapproval in his voice… "Harry, you would have never burst your lip if you were just aware of your surroundings! Blah blah blah," the imaginary voice mocked.

I felt a headache coming on. "Dude, warn a brother before you throw a soda. You could injure someone," Luke said a bit agitated.

Alex scratched his nose, opened his soda, and drank down the contents. "Oh yeah, right. Sorry, dudes," he said.

Luke and I both looked at each other. Alex suddenly got quiet. Walking over to the table, he placed his soda on the ground instead of the coffee table. "Um Alex, why'd you put your drink on the floor?" I asked.

Alex cocked his head back as if I had just insulted his great ancestors. "Isn't it obvious?" He asked.

"Um, what's obvious?" Luke asked.

"Because it's a coffee table, not a soda table! Like, duh!" Alex said.

(Are you serious? You have got to be kidding me,) I thought to myself. Luke gave me a "Don't even ask" face, and Alex just walked away like nothing had even happened. (Sometimes I wonder about the people Luke and the others hang out with. I really do,) I thought, placing my bag down. I sat on the couch, trying to comprehend everything that just happened right now and earlier.

Meanwhile

Ava's p.o.v

I was busy trying to make lunches for myself, my roommate Gwen, and my boyfriend Peter. I was trying to decide if it would it be too cheesy to cut the sandwich I made for him into a heart, and I decided why not? Hopefully he wouldn't make fun of me. Piling steak, cheese, mayonnaise, mustard, and some spicy habanero peppers, I finally finished making his sandwich. I hoped he liked it.

Gwen was in the bathroom, busy curling her hair. She was probably getting ready to confess her feelings to the new boy Ricardo that had just moved here from Spain. I had to admit he was pretty attractive. He had a caramel skin complexion and green eyes. He always wore the best smelling cologne too, and his clothes were obviously name brand. The boy had style.

Gwen wouldn't shut up about how awesome he was. Not that I didn't care about my friend being in love or anything. It was just something about Ricardo that wasn't right, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Finishing herself up, Gwen came out, happily swishing her hair around. "So how do I look?" She asked.

"You look gorgeous, and I'm sure Ricardo will think so too," I said. Gwen smiled. I bit my lip after she walked away. (Hopefully he accepts her for who she is,) I thought to myself. Packing the lunches up, I put them in the fridge and went to get dressed for the school field trip.

Meanwhile

Peter's p.o.v

I went out to find Harry. He couldn't be at Danny and Sam's place. They weren't home. They were spending the night on the Hellicarrier because their place was being sprayed for roaches. And Harry rarely spoke to Gwen, who denied his feelings for her. I still remember comforting Harry after school when Gwen had turned him down. I still feel bad for telling him that there were more fish in the sea, because in reality, I'd break down crying too if Ava denied her feelings for me, or if I got dumped. Either one would be horrible. That leaves only Luke and his roommate's place. Walking a few more blocks, Satoshi, a Japanese student from our school, noticed me walking and called out to me. "HEY, PETE! OVER HERE!" He yelled. Turning around, I walked up to him. He was busy fixing his bike.

"Hey, Satoshi. What's up?" I asked.

"Nothing much, my friend. My mom wanted to know if you'd like to get a ride to school," Satoshi said.

"Oh, thanks. Tell Ms. Fuuya I said thank you but I'm looking for someone right now. I'm scared that he's hurt or something," I replied.

Satoshi stood up and dusted his hands off. "Would that someone be Harry Osborne?" He asked.

I blinked. "Um, how did you know?" I asked.

"I saw him walking through here 30 minutes ago. He looked really upset. I was going to go talk to him, but my mom saw the mess I made in the living room and made me clean it up," Satoshi said.

I felt really bad. He'd left because of me. "Thanks, Satoshi. I'll see you at school today. Bye," I said, walking away. Satoshi waved goodbye and walked inside of his garage, taking the bike along. After that I saw his garage door close.

(Harry I'm so sorry I really am,) I thought to myself.

*An hour later*

Principle Coulson guided the students, all 600 of them, onto separate busses. He was very excited about today because of the field trip. He was saying the aquarium would be perfect to teach us about sea-life, and a bunch of stuff we'd probably just forget about after we grow up.

Stepping onto the bus, I saw faces of people I've never seen before staring at me. Their eyes bore into me like a drill into a screw in wood. I tried to ignore their gazes and walked towards the back.

I noticed Luke and harry and Ava and Gwen sitting down. I saw Harry and tried to wave to him, but he ignored me, looking out the window. I frowned. (Stupid Norman this is all his fault!) I thought. Luke scooted over a bit so I could sit down.

Ava smiled at me while Gwen was too busy applying makeup to her face. (I wonder who's she's getting all dolled up for,) I thought to myself. Ava handed me a lunch she had made. I could already tell it was going to be delicious. Whenever Ava made something, she put her whole heart into it.

Suddenly, a pair of grimy hands snatched the bag out my hands. Flash laughed cruelly at me while he dug into my lunch. Ava and everyone was truly shocked.

Flash has never stole my food before. My lunch money, but not my actual lunch. Digging in the bag. Flash took out the heart shaped sandwich that was meant for me. Unwrapping it, he took a huge bite out of it. "Hmmmm, this isn't bad. You can really taste the steak and…" Before Flash could finish, the habanero pepper hit him like a truck.

Flash screamed in agony as tears flooded his eyes. There was no water in sight except for the old water bottle that's been on the ground last field trip. Literally, only God knows how long that thing's been there.

In desperation flash searched around. A wicked smile spread across my face. "Hey flash I got some water for you." I said, kicking the nasty water towards him. The bus got silent.

"Which will it be, Flash: burn for eternity, or drink the old water bottle? Which will it be?" I asked.

Flash's eyes widened. Harry looked over at me, slightly amused, while Luke was unconvinced and concerned.

"I'm waiting!" I said impatiently.

"Water! Water! Water! Water! Water!" A girl started chanting nearby. The chant seemed to spread rapidly across the bus, making Flash sweat even harder.

To be continued…


	2. Busted and Stranded at the Gas station

*Peter's p.o.v.*  
Now Flash was scared. I could see it in his eyes. He knew he would screw up and mess with the wrong person one day, but he never knew that out of all people, it had to be Peter Parker!

Before Flash could respond or do anything, Celina, his ex-girlfriend, jumped up and forced the water bottle's contents down his throat. Flash's eyes widened in horror because of the millions of germs that were now in his body. He was pretty sure he was going to either: A. Get sick, or B. Get a rare disease that not even scientists or Doctor Carl would be able to cure. "THAT'S IT! DRINK IT ALL UP! MAYBE NEXT TIME THAT'LL TEACH YOU NOT TO CHEAT ON ME!" She snapped angrily, scaring me, and scaring Flash even more.

Flash had 3 girlfriends, and they never met each other until Flash was in the hospital for breaking his leg at a football game. Concerned, all the girls, including Celina, came to visit him. What happened? Well, let's just say Celina was beyond pissed off, the other girl said something smart to her, and that led to a huge fight, ripped dresses, and pulled out hair, and hair extensions if that counts.

I heard Flash had even given all three girls promise rings, which of course had made Celina fall deeper in love with him. She was crushed to find out that he had to have multiple girlfriends to be satisfied. His excuse for cheating on her was that she wouldn't let him take her body. She wasn't ready for that yet. She was still in school and was scared of getting pregnant. It was one of the few things she was scared of. It was also the times when he would belittle her for being tall, skinny, and pale like a Twilight vampire. She knew she'd be prettier like those popular cheerleaders in the school, but she had thyroid problems. Being skinny and pale was not her fault. She was even thinner as a child. If he didn't like the way she looked in the beginning, he should have just never asked her out in the first place.

As for the other girls he was secretly dating, one moved schools due to her being beaten up by Celina, and one stayed and became a cheerleader who had a huge grudge against Celina, even though it was Flash's fault for playing with their hearts like a puppet on a string. It didn't help that despite the scandal, Celina was one of the most popular girls in school.

Choking and spitting, Flash cried like a baby and ran up all the way to the dark part of the bus to be alone. Everybody laughed at him. I would feel bad, but Flash deserved it. I did it! I finally got my revenge. I have slain the dragon, and I have shown everyone that no one messes with Peter Benjamin Parker! I looked nervously at Celina. "Thanks," I said nervously.

"Anything to humiliate that jerk," Celina replied, turning away. "Glad to help." I could've sworn I saw a blush on her face before she turned away. (Could she be attracted to me? No, it couldn't be. Celina's one of the most popular girls at school, and I'm just me,) I thought.

Suddenly the whole bus got quiet when Principal Coulson walked right up to us. I gulped. I was in big trouble, wasn't I? Coulson scanned the bus and all the students, suddenly eying the now empty water bottle on the floor. "What is the meaning of this, Parker?" He asked.

"He deserved…" Celina started.

Before she could finish, Coulson snapped his attention to Luke's roommate Alex. "YOUNG MAN, YOU ARE OUT OF DRESSCODE!" He yelled.

"Huh?" Alex said, licking the hot Cheetos dust off his fingers. He was wearing baggy pants and was wearing a marijuana shirt. It was clearly obvious he always had the munchies.

Coulson felt the vein in his forehead getting ready to pop, bulging like he was in a manga. He rubbed his temples, trying to ease the pain. Digging in his bag, he held out a gray shirt. The bus driver entered the desert, and soon a gas station could be spotted a mile away. "Alex, change now. You better be happy I'm not feeling well today, young man, because I would write you up in a heartbeat," Coulson said, tossing the shirt to Alex.

Alex only nodded before wiping his mouth and hands on his old shirt. Coulson sighed, walking away. He had to make sure to grab a bottle of Advil and a bottle of water to at least get him through this field trip day. I sighed. Thanks to Alex and Celina, I was able to get out of talking to Coulson. I could have sworn I was going to get in trouble, but now I didn't have a lunch. My stomach growled, and I sighed.

(Now, what am I going to eat?) I thought to myself. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around, seeing it was Harry.

"Hey. I have 100 bucks on me. I'll buy you some food, but that doesn't mean I'm going to talk to you for the rest of the day…" Harry said.

I nodded in understanding. "Thanks, buddy," I said, but he cut me off.

"Yeah sure, Parker." Harry muttered. He was still angry about earlier. My stomach churned. What if Harry didn't want to be friends anymore? What if he stopped talking to me permanently? The thought of losing any of my friends, especially Harry, was unbearable. I couldn't take the thought of it. My head started to hurt really badly.

"Peter, are you all right?" MJ asked in a concerned tone.

"I'm fine," I lied. MJ begged to differ.

"Don't lie to me, Peter. Once we're off this bus, you're telling me what's going on," MJ said.

"Yes mother!" I said sarcastically, earning a poke in the arm.

"I mean it, Petey. You know I hate seeing you stressed," MJ replied. I saw the concern in her eyes. She really meant everything she said.

"Okay, okay I'll tell you everything once we get off, I promise," I said. MJ smiled, content with my answer, and sat back in her seat.

*3rd person p.o.v.*

Danny was in the fourth row, secretly watching the whole thing. He had a slight crush on MJ, but with Peter around, he knew he couldn't do anything. Ever since the breakup between Peter and MJ, Danny thought about asking MJ out, but she always saw him as a friend, or at least he thought. She never appeared to get a clue when he would buy her food, or even give her small gifts like perfume or flowers. Maybe she was secretly still in love with Peter, and was just hoping they'd get back together someday. Danny sure hoped that wasn't the case, because she was beautiful in every way.

MJ was smart, talented, and had more than enough sass to spice up any conversation and event. She was always the life of the party. Danny admired how her red hair shone in the sunlight, and he longed to one day see a wedding veil around that pretty face of hers.

*15 minutes later, Peter's p.o.v*

The bus stopped. "OKAY, EVERYONE! REST STOP TIME! IF YOU HAVE TO PEE DO IT NOW!" Coulson yelled. Everyone piled off the bus to use the restroom, and grab a bite to eat. The gas station nearby was selling pizza and hot dogs. They smelled pretty good, too. Maybe I'd try one, and hopefully I don't get sick.

*30 minutes later*

After explaining everything to MJ and using the restroom it was time to get back on the bus walking outside from the gas station I noticed all the buses were gone!

This had to be some sick joke or something where were the other's I tried to calm down but I wasn't able to I started to panic no this can't be happening Coulson wouldn't leave me. Maybe they just went to the other side of the gas station. It was a pretty decent sized one, after all.

Walking around the gas station, I felt the hot sun on my back. "No good. Nobody's here," I said. What am I going to do? I can't stay here all day. The gas station owner wouldn't allow it.

I heard a noise, and looked over. It came from the other side of the corner of the gas station I was standing at. I walked around, and I saw something that I thought I'd never see: a nervous and annoyed Celina. Actually, the annoyed Celina was nothing new. If she was annoyed, which was often, since every guy tried to date her, she would not hesitate to show it. A nervous Celina, however, is unthinkable. She was pacing back and forth, her red hair whipping back and forth like a flag. "Oh, of all the times to lose my cellphone, it had to be today," she muttered to herself.

*Celina's p.o.v.*

I was very irritated by the circumstances. Now, for those who know what I'm like, my being irritated is nothing new. Being asked out by arrogant guys is typically what I'm irritated about. The situation I was in, however, had undeniable novelty. Not only had I been left behind on my own, a situation I prefer to avoid, but I'd also lost my cellphone. Nancy probably had something to do with that. She'd been jealous of me ever since we'd learned that Flash was stringing us along. Without my cellphone, I couldn't call Sam, or Peter. Peter was really cute, in a smart/dork way, but Sam was more dork than Peter, and that just made him cuter. A blush sprang to my cheeks as I thought of the black-haired teen who seemed to enjoy pestering Peter. I stopped myself and shook my head. "Focus, Celina," I told myself. "Getting yourself worked up over some jealous woman won't help." I looked over, and I saw someone. It was Peter. He'd been standing there for a few minutes, no doubt long enough to hear me muttering. "Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who was left here," I said, walking over to him. He wasn't Sam, but he had brains, brains I needed to help me come up with ideas to get us both home. "Do you know where everyone went?" I asked.

He paused in mid-reply. He didn't seem to know exactly where everyone had gone, nor did he know how to get there. "I'm sorry. I don't know," Peter replied. "Do you have Sam's number? Maybe he could help us out," he suggested.

Immediately, my face turned a light red. "I left my cellphone on the bus," I muttered, a bit embarrassed. "Do you have Sam's number?" I asked. He nodded, and handed me his phone. I gently took it, just so I could be sure that I didn't break it. Despite my tall, thin stature, I was quite strong, strong enough to go toe-to-toe with The Hulk in an arm-wrestling competition. Between you and me, The Hulk is still sore about losing.

*Peter's p.o.v.*

She opened it, and smiled. "Oh, good. We've got reception on this thing," she said, her face bearing a look of confusion. I looked at the phone, and realized that there was a message from a Director Fury. "It's nothing," I tried to explain.

Celina froze me with a look. "We will talk about this later, Peter Benjamin Parker," she said in a very serious voice. "Right now, I've got to make this call." As if on cue, the phone began ringing. I looked at the number. It was Sam, and Celina immediately answered it. "Hey, Sam," she said happily.

"Hey, Celina," I heard Sam say through the speaker. "I was getting-I mean, everyone was getting worried about you. Hey, do you know where Peter is?"

"He's right next to me, eavesdropping on our conversation," Celina said with a voice that seemed to border on sounding irritated, so I backed off a bit and sat on the curb. "So yes, he's okay. We're trying to figure out a way to get home. Care to help a defenseless, poor girl and a nerdy guy out?"

I heard Sam laughing loudly. "The whole school knows you're far from helpless," he replied, "ever since you beat up those girls with your right hand in a cast. Ouch!"

Celina chuckled slightly, and again, I could've sworn I saw a blush on her face, but it was much stronger than the one she had on the bus. That's when it hit me. (Celina likes Sam!) I shouted in my mind.

"Let's get back to the situation at hand," Celina said, chuckling a little more. "Can you help us get back with the group? Tell the bus driver to turn back or something?"

I heard Sam heave the biggest sigh I'd ever heard come from him. "I'm sorry, but we can't turn back. Phil's-I mean, Principal Coulson isn't feeling too well. That's why we left so soon. I can't help you."

"That's what I was afraid of," Celina said in reply.

"You? Afraid? That'll never happen," Sam replied with a scoff, unknowingly echoing my thoughts. Suddenly, there was silence.

"What happened?" I asked as Celina removed the phone from her ear with an expression that had the faintest traces of apprehension.

"Connection failed," she replied coldly. "Your phone's dead."

"Aw, man!" I complained. Getting up, I started to walk down the road, Celina following at my side. Maybe if I'm lucky, someone will let us hitch hike. I knew that was dangerous, because nowadays, people killed others just for fun. Still, maybe, just maybe, someone would give us a ride that wasn't a psychopath. Walking down the road, I totally remembered my bag was on the bus. I sighed. At least I had Celina at my side. She could protect me…hopefully. At that, I started to walk down the dusty hot road to somewhere…

To be continued…


	3. The accident.

Meanwhile

*on the bus*

Nancy, Celina's enemy and the newest high school bully, snickered to herself as she applied her lipstick. Her friends sat around her, grinning themselves. "So did you get it?" The brunette of the group asked. Nancy nodded. Bending down, she picked up a light blue backpack that was owned by Celina.

"So what are you going to do with her bag?" The redhead friend of the group asked.

Nancy rolled her eyes. "What does it look like I'm going to do with it, idiot? Once we make another pit stop, I'm dumping her things in the toilet," Nancy replied back.

"Um, don't you think that's going a little too far, Nancy?" The other girl asked.

"Look. Shut up, Amber. If you're not going to do this with us, remember. I have pics on my phone of you doing you know what with Flash in the girl's bathroom I advise you to keep your mouth shut if you don't want those photos getting out!" Nancy hissed.

The brunette known as amber shut right up. Listening to their conversation, Luke shook his head in disgust. He used to date Nancy, but was quite glad he broke up with her. He could swear that girl was Lilith herself. She'd do anything to get her way, no matter who she had to hurt, slander, and/or destroy to obtain her wants and desires.

She once stole his credit card from his gym bag and maxed out his credit card, putting him in over 7,000 dollars of debt. Thanks to Danny's well-appreciated help, it was paid for and out of the way. Luke was already working two jobs to pay for the apartment he and Alex lived in, but Alex's job at McDonald's wasn't going to get them anywhere, and with the price of food getting higher and multiple bills to pay, Luke's anxiety was at its ultimate high. Suddenly, he felt some soft hands on his waist. Snapping him out of his thoughts, his best friend's, Cloude's girlfriend, Claire, had her hands dangerously close to his manhood. "Hey, big guy. What's up? She asked seductively.

Gwen saw her nearby and quickly got up from her seat. "Get away from him, you heartless harpy of a succubus!" She growled.

Claire quickly shot her a death glare. "Mind your own business, Gwendolyn Stacey. Can't you see Luke and I are busy?" Claire said, snuggling close to Luke, who was trying to pry her off. The skank had the grip of a ninja on his waist.

"I mean it. Get your hands off him, now," Gwen hissed.

Claire giggled. "And what if I don't?" She replied, raising an eyebrow. Suddenly, footsteps could be heard coming towards them. Luke hoped it was Coulson, who could talk sense into anyone despite his headache, but life was once again a cruel mistress to him.

"Luke, what are you doing with my girl?" Cloude asked. Cloude was a dark skin African American male with long black hair he usually had in dreadlocks, but today it was tied up. His green eyes scanned Luke, Gwen, and then his girlfriend, who tried to play it off as if Luke touched her first.

"Oh, Cloude. It's Luke. It's not what it looks like. He-he told me to come near for a second, and I thought he wanted to tell me something, but suddenly he grabbed me and wouldn't let me go!" Claire lied.

Luke looked at her, astonished of the lie she had just told on him. Gwen wasn't fazed by what she heard. Claire was just like almost every girl in school nowadays: cheap, mean, and easy. Cloude was not ignorant of the situation. This wasn't the first time Claire cheated on him. Last time, it was with his cousin Tyrone. He knew deep in his heart that she would never change, but the fact that they had grown up together hurt him the most.

"Claire, I think it's time for us you know….to see new people," Cloude said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Um, excuse me. What did you just say to me?" Claire asked, incredulous.

"I said we need to see new people…" Before Cloude could finish, Claire got up and slapped him so hard on the face that the whole front of the bus turned around to see what just happened. Cloude said nothing else. He rubbed his face and stared coldly at her. He promised his mother before she passed away that he'd never put his hands on a woman, no matter the situation he was in. "No one breaks up with me and gets away with it! Watch your back, Cloude! Remember, your dad works for mine, and I can have him fired any time I want. You'll wish you never broke up with me by then!" Claire snarled, walking away. She left Cloude where he was standing.

"Cloude are you okay?" Gwen asked. Cloude said nothing, but sat in the far end of the bus. He took out his headphones and blasted his music.

Luke felt really bad for his friend. He hoped Cloude wasn't mad at him. He would never steal anyone's girlfriend, especially his best friend's girlfriend. Cloude has been his best friend for 5 years, and he hoped this wasn't going to put a wedge in their relationship.

Meanwhile

A truck driver who had been awake for 24 hours had fallen asleep at the wheel and started to swerve, losing control of the truck completely.

Meanwhile

The bus driver was unaware of the truck coming towards them. He turned to face a very irritable looking Coulson who was busy rubbing his temples. He was very happy that they were going to be at their destination in 2 hours.

All Coulson wanted to do now was go home, open a fresh bottle of white wine, enjoy a bath, and after that, go straight to bed. The children were getting on his nerves today. Usually, he was calm and collected, but today, he wasn't ready to handle all the madness these highschoolers decided to throw at him.

"Hey, buddy. You okay?" The bus driver asked."I'll be better once this day is over, Arnold. These kids are driving me crazy," Coulson responded. He groaned as he felt his head throbbing again.

The Advil certainly wasn't strong enough to cure his headache temporarily, or at least at all. Arnold chuckled. "Well, hang in there, Coulson. I got me five mighty fine children: two girls and three boys. I know kids are a handful now, but it'll be worth it seeing the young ones walking down for their graduation ceremony," he replied.

Coulson nodded. "Yeah, Arnold. I guess you're right." He said with a smile. Coulson never had any real luck with women, so he had no children of his own, but he often wondered how his life would have been if he did have children of his own.

Suddenly the bus collided with a truck, sending Coulson flying across the floor. Glass sprayed everywhere and the students screamed loudly in mindless shock and terror. The bus fell down a trench, rolling and landed in some bushes nearby.

Suddenly, the world went black.

*20 minutes later, Gwen's p.o.v*

"Ow, my head hurts really badly!" I said to myself. I tried to stand up, but felt my entire arms burn badly. Glass had cut my arms up so badly I didn't even notice they were mine. I felt something touching my leg and sat up to inspect what it was. Getting up, I felt around and grabbed something soft.

"Huh?" I said, turning it over. I noticed it was hair. "Oh, my gosh!" I screamed, backing away. Laying by my leg was Nancy Scottsdale's corpse. I had never really seen a dead body this close up before, but I wish I had never seen it in the first place!

Looking around, I saw unconscious and dead students laying everywhere on the bus. I felt myself starting to shake, probably from shock. "I want to go home. Why is this happening?

"The sounds of an ambulance and a police car's filled the air. The roof of the bus was quickly removed. "Hold on, young lady. We're coming to help you and the others," a paramedic said. I barely heard the other words he said before the world went black again.

To be continued…


	4. The Hospital

Gwen awoke to find herself in a pristine white hospital room. Her head was hurting, and she tried to lift herself up. A nurse saw her attempting to get up and quickly stopped her. ''Ms. Stacy, please no getting up. You and the other teenagers have been in a horrible accident. You see, a truck driver dozed off at the wheel and collided into your bus. I'm sorry to say that there have been four deaths from the collision as of right now, one of them being Nancy Scottsdale," the nurse said. Gwen suddenly felt sick. The memory of the horrific accident and Nancy' death flooded back to her. ''Please don't feel bad, Ms. Stacey. What happened today wasn't your fault. It was just a misfortunate occurrence."

"Peter. I want Peter," Gwen replied cutting her off.

The nurse bit her lip and went over and grabbed a cup of water for Gwen. Handing the water to her, the nurse clasped her hands together. "Ms. Gwendolyn Stacey, I'm sorry to inform you that Peter, Luke, Sam, Ava, Danny, and Celina are missing," the nurse replied.

"Missing? But why?" Gwen asked, worried for her friends. Celina was tough, but was still recovering from a cold, which meant that she wasn't back to full strength, as much as she tried to hide it. Still, she had to believe that her friends were still alive. That meant that there was still hope.

"I do not know, Ms. Stacey. I do not know, but please just sit back and rest. The police are still investigating what happened, and a search party is looking for them as we speak," the nurse said at that the older woman got up and straightened her clothing before leaving out the door. "And Ms. Stacey, please do get some rest. I assure you that everything will be fine," the nurse promised before shutting the door.

(This can't be happening. Why did this have to happen to me and my friends. This was supposed to be a fun trip to the aquarium, and it all just went to pieces,) Gwen thought to herself. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, snapping Gwen out of her thoughts. She didn't know who it was, and hoped it was Principal Coulson. Hopefully it was. She couldn't deal with another annoying nurse. "COME IN!" She yelled. The person behind the door slowly turned the door handle . Walking inside there stood a handsome young man, a couple of years older than Gwen, stood in the room. He had a flawless milky white complexion, curly short brunette hair, and crystal blue eyes that sparkled like the rare diamonds only the Black Cat would desire. He had a cut on his head and a broken arm, but despite the injuries, he was still a handsome individual. Gwen felt her face heat up and a small blush spread across her face. (Why am I getting flustered over a stranger I barely know? This boy he could be a pervert for all I know,) Gwen thought to herself.

"Oh. I'm sorry. I do apologize. I thought you were my friend Amber. You know, you look just like her, except her eyes are hazel," the handsome stranger said.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?" Gwen asked.

The stranger brushed his hair out of his face with his good hand. "You're right. How rude of me. My name is Andrew Steel. I'm a senior at Midtown High School," the brunette replied.

"Well, it's nice to meet you. My name is Gwen. Gwendolyn Stacey," Gwen replied. The brunette raised an eyebrow and smirked. "What's so funny, pretty boy?" Gwen asked.

"Forgive me. I've heard that Captain Stacey had a daughter, but I never knew that you were so breathtakingly beautiful in person," Andrew replied.

Gwen blushed. '' Um… oh. Wow… I… ugh… Thanks," Gwen said. The brunette smiled.

The sound of knocking was heard. The nurse entered and looked at the two. "Mr. Steele, Ms. Amber McCartney is in room 109. She's getting impatient, and refuses to take her meds, saying that if you aren't here, we can forget about the medicine," the nurse said.

Andrew chuckled. "Ahhh, Amber. She was always the stubborn type since we were kids. I have to go now, Gwen, but I'll see you again soon," he replied.

Taking Gwen's hand, he kissed it before being escorted out by the nurse. The door shut with a thump, and once again, Gwen was left alone with her thoughts. She felt her head starting to hurt again, and she found herself being drifted off to sleep from the medicine. Her thoughts were cut short with, "Peter, please be okay…"

Meanwhile

Peter and Celina were nearing a small town after walking aimlessly for a few hours. They had met Sam, who had told them about the vehicle accident. Unfortunately, he didn't remember which direction he'd come from, and he'd forgotten his cellphone at home. Celina, who was too busy trying to get Peter's cellphone to work, wasn't watching where she was going and tripped on a rock, hurting her ankle in the fall. Celina yelped in pain. Sam, hearing her cry of pain, came over to help her up. When Sam's hand touched hers, Celina nearly jumped for joy inside, although she didn't show it on the outside. "Hey are you alright?" Sam asked, concerned. Celina nodded, and tried to stand up, but collapsed to the ground, groaning softly in pain. Sam took a look at her ankles, and winced. "Oh man, you sprained your ankle. Here. You can't walk on it. I'll carry you the rest of the way," Sam offered.

Celina shook her head. "I'm fine. It's just pain," she said. She pushed herself to her feet, wincing and groaning the whole way. "See?" She said after getting to her feet. She tried to take a couple steps forward, but fell to the ground again, or at least she would have if Sam hadn't intercepted her mid-fall.

Peter came over to see what happened. "Here, I'll take care of her," he said, but Sam wouldn't hear of it. Much to Celina's embarrassment, he picked her up bridal style, and he helped her onto his back.

Sam blushed when he felt her breasts push up against him. (Wow. She's like really soft,) he thought to himself in surprise. Celina exercised a lot to make sure she was fit as a cheerleader, and her body didn't appear to be soft, just like her personality.

"You don't have to do this. I'm fine," Celina protested, blushing profusely in embarrassment. As if being picked up like they were married wasn't enough, she was being carried around in a way that made her feel weak and unable to walk.

Sam shook his head. "No way," he replied seriously. "Tough girl or not, you can't be walking around on that ankle, and that's that."

Celina sighed, giving up. "Oh, fine," she grumbled. "Carry me around like a little kid, why don't you?"

Peter noticed a small town nearby. ''Hey, look. Do you see that? There's a town there, and if there's a town, that means there's people. We can call for help there," Peter said excitedly.

Sam snapped out of his thoughts. Celina wrapped her arms around his shoulders, holding on tight. (No point in falling off. It'll make him coddle me even more,) she thought. "Yeah, cool. Okay," Nova replied.

"Come on, bucket-head. The last one there is a rotten egg," Peter said, running off to the town nearby.

''Hey, wait up!" Sam replied, carrying Celina off with him to the town nearby, making sure not to jangle her ankle too much.

Little did they know they were being watched…

To be continued…


	5. The watcher

A tall grotesquely formed man watched Celina, Peter, and Sam walk into the open dusty town from outside a boarded up house. The fan in the room was the only source of air for the man. His desk was filled with pictures of missing people and weapons he used to protect himself from various dangers such as wolves and intruders.  
''Not good. Those kids shouldn't be here. This place isn't its normal self. Not after the incident a year ago," he muttered to himself. People who visited the town usually went insane and missing, and strange creatures have been spotted as well. A villager said his Dog was carried off by a rat-man looking creature.

Others said they've spotted a bright red haired boy by the water source. Maybe he had something to do with the strange occurrences happening in the village. Sadly, the villagers had no proof, and neither did the man, if the boy had done anything bad at all.

(The village might be under a curse. No, that's not it, but maybe…) the man thought to himself. Those group of kids looked interesting, so the man decided he'd keep an eye out for them. The body count in the village had to be stopped or at least prevented from going up until a real solution could be found. He didn't want those kids to end up like the rest had.

Meanwhile

*Sam's p.o.v*

The town was dusty and quiet. A little TOO quiet. The houses were boarded up, and the only sounds were heard were dogs and the frequent sounds of birds on the rooftop. An old woman came out, pushing a baby carriage. She wasn't looking too good, so I called out to her, carrying Celina on my back. ''EXCUSE ME, MS. ARE YOU OKAY?" I yelled.

The old lady didn't hear me, and kept walking. Suddenly, the baby carriage toppled over, along with the old woman. Celina and I gasped. ''Oh no. is the baby okay?" Celina asked.

"I hope so. Let's go help them. That lady must have hurt herself or something," I replied back. Celina nodded and held on tight while I ran over to help the elderly woman and the child. When I went to help the old woman up, she just sat there. "Ms., are you okay. Here. Let me help you and the baby up…" but before I could finish, the old woman cut me off.

Lifting the baby carriage up, she exposed what was inside. Underneath the stroller was nothing but a rock dressed in a baby's clothing. "There is no baby…not anymore. The real baby was taken from me years ago," The old woman said.

Getting up, the woman picked up the carriage and placed the rock back inside. Dusting herself off, she began to walk away. "…I've got a bad feeling about this. This place gives me the creeps. We should get out of here soon," Celina said.

"Actually, not right now. I feel kind of dehydrated. Besides, the lady must be senile or something, or traumatized. I feel bad for her Celina. I mean, she did lose her baby." I replied.

"Sam, what if the baby never existed in the first place? This place is totally giving off a very eerie vibe. I don't like it," Celina replied back.

''Yeah but… Hey, where's Peter?" I asked.

"I don't know. I thought he was behind us," Celina replied.

I looked around frantically until I spotted a diner/ inn. "Hold on. He might be in there," I said.

''Sam, I hope you're right, but if anything happens, we're getting out of there, and fast." Celina replied.

"I know, I know. Don't worry. It'll be fine. I promise," I assured her.

Celina bit her lip, looking a mix of irritation, impatience, and some nervousness. ''Well, okay. I believe you…" she said back. I wished I could believe myself. Something was off about this town. Very off. It made Celina nervous.

Hoisting her up, we walked to the inn. To our surprise, nine people were inside. Everyone was talking and eating but stopped and stared when we opened the door. The bell alarm dinging signaled our presence. Suddenly, the owner of the place suddenly pulled out a gun and aimed it straight at us. "Who are you? We don't take kindly to strangers," The burly man asked.

Celina narrowed her eyes at the guy. "Don't make me get off this nice guy's shoulders," she warned, her nervousness seeming to evaporate like ice in front of lava. "Bad ankle or not, I could still kick your butt."

I was surprised. (Did she just call me nice? She didn't even call Flash that,) I thought.

Peter came out from the restroom and jumped in front of him. "Hey, whoa, whoa! Don't shoot! These are my friends, Ed," Peter said.

The man lowered his gun. "Friends why didn't you say so?" Ed replied putting the gun down.

"He wasn't in the room at the time," Celina replied dryly.

"Sorry about that. It's just a bit rough around here ever since the incident. An old woman named Beth, a friend of ours. Grandchild went missing 2 years ago, and things haven't been the same since," Ed said.

The look on Celina's face was something to see. She was shocked like she'd taken a hit from Electro. She was probably thinking about what she'd said about the old lady. I was thinking the same thing. ''Peter Benjamin, we've been looking for you. Don't run off without telling us, man. You had Sam and I worried." Celina said, scolding him like a strict mother talking to a child.

"I'm sorry, Celina. I got thirsty. Plus, I was going to pass out. It's blazing out there!" Peter replied.

"Look, at least we're together, you guys. Let's stop arguing, okay?" I said.

Celina sighed and nodded. "Hey, I'm really sorry about aiming that gun at you kids. How about you three stay the night? As long as you like, too. Plus, dinner and lunch is on me," Ed offered.

"Hey thanks, sir," I said. This was a relief. We had a safe place to stay, for now. I heard a soft sigh of relief in my ear. Celina had been panting heavily which I was carrying her outside. She was probably as thirsty as I was, and hungry.

"So, what would you kids like to eat?" Ed asked as we all sat at the table.

I hope the others are alright.

To be continued…


	6. The inn.

-Sam's POV-  
Ed handed us the menus. After scanning through them, I ordered the chicken sandwich, Celina ordered a burger with extra bacon and Peter ordered a steak with a side of fries. "And how would you like your burger, miss?" Ed asked Celina.

Celina thought for a second. "Medium rare, please," she replied back.

Ed nodded and wrote her order down. "And for you my boy how would you like your steak?" Ed asked.

"Well-done, please," Peter said back.

Ed nodded. "Okay. For the drinks, what will you kids be having?" Ed asked.

"I'll take a Pepsi," I replied.

"Is coke fine?" Ed asked.

"Yeah," I said back, a tad disappointed. I was craving some Pepsi instead, but oh well. It couldn't be helped. Peter ordered a strawberry lemonade while Celina ordered the Arnold Palmer ice tea. Ed handed our orders to the chef who took them without a word and disappeared into the kitchen. Everyone went back to eating and chatting leaving peter and Celina and I to ourselves, completely ignoring us all together.

*35 minutes later*

A bad looking waitress came by and slid us our food and drink. Before she left, she winked at me, batting her overly long false eyelashes. She had to be at least 50 years old. "Enjoy your food, kids! Eat up! Especially you boys! I've seen chickens that looked healthier than you. You're cute, but ya need a little more meat on ya bones," the red haired lady said before sauntering off.

Digging into my food, I savored the taste. (Not bad at all. I give this place four out of five stars,) I thought to myself. The chicken sandwich was good. Considering how old this place looks, I'm just glad the food's edible and plus, it's free! Can't beat a deal like that. Peter cut into his food quietly while Celina poured ketchup and mustard on her burger, which she proceeded to eat quickly. We ate quietly after that.

It started to get dark out. "Don't you kids have a place to stay?" Ed asked.

"No, no we don't. We got left behind by our bus, and we can't find our friends and principal," Celina replied.

"That's not good. Why don't you head down to Margaret's inn? Tell 'em ed sent you. If they give you any trouble, tell 'em to put the tab on my bill," Ed replied back.

"Thank you, but where is the inn?" Celina asked.

"It's just downstairs. Just make a left, and you'll see it." Ed replied back.

We thanked him and got up to leave. "Hey, you guys?" Celina said.

"Yeah, Celina. What's wrong?" I asked

"Do you think the others are alright?" Celina asked.

"They should be fine. I'm sure Luke and Danny and the others are at the hotel, and they probably sent out a search party for us," Peter replied. I nodded in agreement. Since Celina's ankle was hurt, I carried her down to the inn rooms, ignoring her protest that she could walk just fine. Sometimes, she could be extremely stubborn, but that's what I liked about her. She wasn't like some of the girls, who changed boyfriends so often it seemed like they had a new one every day. Celina wasn't like that. She was very choosy with guys. Hopefully, she liked me.

The lady at the receptionist table smacked her gum loudly, painting her nails, completely unaware of our presence. Either that, or she was ignoring us. "Hi. Excuse me, miss. We need a room. Ed sent us here to stay for the night," I said, helping a limping Celina up to the desk.

The messy haired blonde, who was in her mid 20s, looked up at us. She coated her nails in a neon pink lacquer. "Okay. How many rooms will it be, then?" She asked, taking her eyes off us.

"One, please, and is it possible to get a room with three beds?" I asked.

The lady blew on her now painted nails to dry them. "Sorry, but we only got two beds. There's also a pull-out couch, but it's kind of uncomfortable unless you like firm beds," she responded.

I internally groaned. I knew Webhead was going to fight me over the bed, and I really didn't want to share a room with him, especially not a bed. I'd rather die than suffer such a fate. "Okay. That's fine, thank you." The blonde gave us the room keys. The room number was 209, which was right around the corner.

I gave the keys to Peter. He unlocked the door while I carried Celina into the room, much to her embarrassment. She's so cute when she's embarrassed. The room smelt a bit like moth balls, and a ceiling fan spun noisily in the room. I never liked ceiling fans. They always made me feel like they were going to fall off and kill me in some type of freak accident.

I tried to lay Celina down on the bed, but she insisted on taking the couch. "I need to elevate my ankle," she said, "and besides, I'm not a fan of hotel beds. I like to sleep on something with substance, and firm beds are alright with me." I placed her on the couch, and was about to get into my bed when I realized that I almost forgot to lock the door. I'm glad I went over to the closet and saw it unlocked. Don't want to let any weirdos in. I locked the door and the closet. Hey, you can't blame me. More than one alien wanting my head, helmet, or both has come in through the closet. No points for originality. Climbing in bed, I tried my best to sleep. Somehow, Celina was out already, snoring softly. Hopefully, someone will come get us in the morning.

To be continued…


	7. Late night disturbance

*3 hours later*

*Celina's p.o.v*

A roach crawled into the bed where Sam was sleeping. Sam snored loudly, unaware of the disgusting creature getting dangerously close to his foot. I stirred from my sleep, getting up from the bed. I had to use the bathroom, and when I got up I noticed the hotel had roaches! Now I'm not afraid of bugs, so I flicked the one near Sam away and ended up waking him up. "Hey, what are you doing Celina?" He asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"There was a roach about to touch you. I meant to flick it off, not wake you up. Sorry," I nervously replied back, blushing a bit. I really didn't mean to wake him up. He looked so cute while he was sleeping.

Sam was completely grossed out and got out of bed. "Okay. Definitely not sleepy anymore," he said shuddering in revulsion. I winced forgetting that my ankle was sprained and I accidentally put too much pressure on it. Sam noticed. "Hey, don't try to walk on your own. Let me help you," he said with a concerned tone in his voice. I didn't know whether to feel flattered that he was concerned about me, or annoyed that he continually worried about me. I'm a tough girl. "Why are you up, by the way? Did Web Head's snoring wake you up?" Sam asked.

"Nope. I have to use the bathroom," I said back, trying to ignore the pain in my ankle.

Sam scratched his head. "Here. Use the one in the room," he replied back. Going over, he opened the bathroom door. Once he flicked on the lights, we were welcome with a crowd of roaches scattering and the vomit-inducing smell of feces. Sam gagged and quickly shut the door. I almost puked, myself. (I know this isn't the fanciest hotel, but they could at least be hygienic!) I thought to myself.

"On second thought, let's just use the one downstairs…" I said. Sam nodded in agreement. "Hey, where's peter?" I asked, noticing his bed was completely empty.

"He must have discovered how disgusting the bathroom was and left to use the one downstairs," Sam replied.

"Either that, or he got hungry and went to find something to eat. Come on. Let's go find Parker," I replied. Sam nodded and helped me out of the room before locking the door behind us.

Meanwhile

*downstairs *

*Peter's p.o.v*

The restaurant was closed, so that meant no hot meal. (Man, I could go for a Rueben right now. Either that or a club turkey sandwich,) I thought to myself. Just thinking about food made my stomach growl, and I realized just how hungry I really am.

Walking down the stairs, I noticed the building was quiet. A little too quiet, but I tried not to let it get to me. It was late, and everyone and their mother was probably asleep or gone home. Who knows. I saw a bluish tint light from the distance. Oh, thank goodness. It's a vending machine I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!

Approaching the machine, I dug in my pants pocket and pulled out my wallet. I took out a couple of bucks. Putting a dollar in the machine, I pressed the button for a bag of chips, and then a candy bar, and then I got myself a cola.

''A feast fit for a king!" I said, holding my snacks triumphantly.

"Well, your highness, I guess I eat like royalty, too, since I always get snacks from this vending machine," a feminine voice said out loud startling me.

"Who's there?" I asked, a bit uneasy.

"Don't worry, kid. It's just me…" The female replied. Out from the darkness stepped the lady from the reception desk. I didn't notice earlier, but she was really pretty. Her once messy blonde hair was now curled and hung beautifully down her shoulders. Her clothes were tight fitting but professional.

"Ugh… I…. Who?" I tried to reply, but before I could finish, she cut me off.

"Peter, isn't it? My name's Jennifer. Don't worry. I don't bite," she said, winking at me.

I started to get nervous. "Ugh… I'm 16 years old." I sputtered out stupidly.

She giggled. "Really? That seems so young for such a handsome, young man such as yourself," Jennifer said, complimenting me.

Honestly, I don't understand why I let beautiful women make me nervous. It happens all the time, especially around Ava….(Wait! Ava! I totally forgot about her! What happens if she's hurt, or worse? I had to get to a phone, quick!) I thought. "Look, Jennifer, you're really pretty, but I have to go now. Plus, I already have someone that I like, but I'm sure any man would be lucky to have you," I said back to her.

At that I turned around to walk away. When she suddenly grabbed me. "Wait, don't go. I'm hungry, you're hungry. Maybe we can help each other," she purred.

"Look, I don't have time to fool around with you -I meant, eat with you- Jennifer. I have to go!" I replied back to her, snatching my arm away from her.

Jennifer narrowed her eyes, but the smile never left her face. "Eat? Who said I wanted to eat with you?" she chuckled.

"Look, lady. I'm a kid. I'm under the legal age of consent, so please just stop," I said back channeling my inner Wolverine. After all, I'm the best there is at what I do.

"Oh, sweetheart. I don't want to hook up. I…WANT TO HAVE YOU FOR LUNCH! "Jennifer screeched loudly. Suddenly, the once sexy receptionist turned into the most hideous, hairiest centipede-like monster that only nightmares themselves could spawn. "Yes. You'll make a tasty treat for my babies," the monster hissed. I gulped. This couldn't be happening.

To be continued…


	8. Survival of the fittest

Thinking quickly, I shook the can of soda and tossed it at the monster. Jennifer shrieked like a banshee when the soda burst open and exploded in her eyes, temporarily blinding her and giving me the opportunity to escape. Dropping the chips, I quickly ran and hid inside a locker nearby in the old janitor room. The room stunk of cleaning supplies and old stale water, but it was worth the discomfort not to be eaten by whatever the heck Jennifer was. I can't tell if it was a mutant or an alien, but whatever it was. It wanted me for a midnight snack. I froze hearing the door to the locker room swing open loudly. Jennifer was looking for me. (It was a good thing I found that old bottle of cologne in the locker and sprayed it on myself, or she would have found me by now,) I thought to myself.

Jennifer sniffed around and started looking through things to find me. I heard her toss, break, and smash things out of frustration that she couldn't find her meal, AKA me. Finally giving up, the centipede monster-thing left the room. I stayed put for a couple of minutes until I knew fully that she was gone and not in the hall or anything. I stepped outside from the locker.(Well, there goes my chance of eating,) I thought to myself, and at that, I heard my stomach growl. I groaned. Oh, well. I better head back to Sam and Celina. (They're probably worried about where I am,) I thought to myself again. Looking both ways to make sure the coast was clear, I headed back to our room.

Meanwhile

*Sam's p.o.v *

I decided to carry Celina on my back because it was much easier to do than helping her limp from hall to hall or up the stairs. She still insisted on trying to walk there, insisting that her ankle was fine, but I knew that she was putting up a tough act, which I found strangely cute. "Still no sign of Peter. You don't think he went outside do you? " I asked Celina.

Celina shook her head no. "Peter is obnoxious at times, but not stupid. He'd never go outside, especially in this situation. It's dark out, and who knows what's lurking outside," she replied back.

"Yeah, you're right. Besides, he would never leave without us. Peter would never ditch his friends," I replied back to her.

Celina nodded in agreement. There was a ladies' bathroom nearby, and Celina tapped my shoulder to get my attention. "Hey, put me down, please. I still have to use the bathroom," Celina asked.

"Oh yeah, sure. You go ahead in. I'll wait for you outside," I said to her, slowly helping her down. Celina limped into the bathroom to take care of her business while I waited outside. I heard a loud bang and jumped. "Celina, was that you?" I asked.

"No, why? Stop talking to me! I'm trying to use the bathroom! " Celina said back.

(Maybe it was just someone upstairs, or rats, hopefully,) I thought to myself. Curiosity got the best of me so I walked over to wear the sound had come from. Peeking around the corner. I saw the trashcan tipped over. It was probably just a rat or something. (If this inn has roaches, it has rats, too. I wouldn't doubt it,) I told myself over and over again. Suddenly I felt someone watching me. Turning around, I saw the lady from yesterday staring at me. "Um hi aren't you the receptionist lady?" I asked.

"Yes, yes. I am. my name is Jennifer. Why are you up so late? Everyone is in bed," she asked.

"Oh. Our room's bathroom is disgusting, so that's why we're downstairs. My friend Celina and I just had to use the one downstairs. We're also looking for our friend Peter," I replied back, nonchalantly picking my nails.

That seemed to have gotten her attention. Taking my hands excitedly, she looked me in the eyes. "I know where your friend is," she said.

"Really?" I asked.

Jennifer nodded yes. "I saw the poor boy running through the halls, looking scared out of his mind. It's almost if he had seen a ghost," Jennifer replied.

I groaned. "Web Head, what did you get yourself into, now?" I muttered.

"What was that?" Jennifer asked.

"Nothing, Ms. Can you take me and Celina to Peter, or at least point us in his direction?" I asked.

"Sure. It's dangerous late at night, so I'll accompany you both," Jennifer replied back.

"Thanks, lady. That's really nice of you," I said.

"Anything to help the children. " Jennifer replied back with a strange smile.

Celina finally came out the bathroom. "Hey, Celina. You know the receptionist lady, here? She said she knows where Peter is," I said to her.

Celina raised an eyebrow. "Um, I'm not trying to be rude or anything, but it's 3 AM. Why is she roaming the halls this late at night?" She asked.

I shrugged. "Beats me. Who cares? She's going to help us find Peter, and that's all that matters right now. You don't want Peter to get hurt, right?" I asked firmly.

Celina bit her lip, looking hurt, which hurt me. I didn't mean to hurt her like that. I didn't know she was that sensitive. "No. He's my friend," she replied back.

"Well come on than before we head gets himself in trouble. " I said back. Celina sighed and limped over to me. After helping her on to my back, I faced Jennifer with a smile. "Well, Ms. J, lead the way." I said cheerfully.

Jennifer smirked. "Certainly," she replied back. At that, the three of us walked down the hall to find Peter.

*Third person p.o.v.

While the two weren't looking, Jennifer licked her lips. She couldn't wait to get Sam and Celina and Peter alone together and eat them.

To be continued…


	9. Great Escape  and Encounter

Meanwhile

*Peter's p.o.v*

After heading back to the inn room, I was going to turn the door knob when suddenly, something just felt off. (You know what? I think I'll go look for Sam and Celina. I don't know why, but something just feels off,) I thought to myself. Then, it suddenly hit me. There, walking around the inn somewhere, was that thing, whatever she was. She would hurt them. I can't just stay here. Celina and Sam might be in danger. At that, I took off running down the hall, not paying attention to where I was going. I slipped on something on the floor, and fell right on my tailbone. It hurt, but it was nothing too serious. Nothing my healing ability couldn't take. "Ouch!" I muttered. Looking on the ground, I saw what I had slipped on. It was someone's red lost cigarette lighter. (Of course I don't smoke, but I'm going to take it anyway. It might come in handy for something,) I thought to myself.

Taking the lighter I flicked it on a bit to make sure it was working and placed it in my pocket for later. After that, I went out to search for Sam and Celina.

Meanwhile

*At the hospital*

*Andrew Steel's p.o.v*

I sat in a nearby chair while my childhood friend Amber ranted my head off about her injuries. "Just look at me, Andrew. I used to be beautiful. Now I'm going to have a big ugly scar on my forehead!" Amber ranted angrily.

"Amber, you are still beautiful. Don't worry about that. It'll heal. Besides, coco butter will fade those scars, and your face will be back to normal in no time," I replied back.

Amber's face lit up. "Really? " She asked.

"Yep." I replied back. Amber smiled and hugged me close. We've been friends for years now, and she was like a little sister to me. Kissing her on her forehead, I heard a knock at the door, and I told her to sit tight while I went to see who it was. Opening the door, five police officers greeted me. "Good afternoon, young man. Are you Andrew Steel?" A particularly chubby police officer asked.

"Yes, I am. Why do you ask? " I asked back in return.

"We're here to file a missing persons' report. Your principal, Mr. Coulson, told me that you and the other victims were in the same class," The police officer replied back.

"That's terrible, but I have so many classmates, sir, that I can't remember all of their names," I honestly replied back.

The officer signaled his partner to hand him a yellow envelope which he did, without hesitation. "Alright, son. Maybe this will refresh your memory," the police officer replied, opening the yellow envelope and handing me three pictures of the missing people he was just telling me about.

My eyes widened. "Hey, I know these three. That's Sam, Celina, and Peter. They're in my biology class," I said. (Peter's a smart guy, and Sam's got his moments, but I hope they don't get that cold Celina's gotten,) I thought.

The police officer raised an eyebrow, or maybe it was an exceptionally hairy caterpillar. "So, you do know them. Good. Peter's friend, Harry, said you'd know. Why don't you say goodbye to your girlfriend and come with us? We have to ask you a few questions," the police officer replied.

Amber looked over, trying to get a look at the policemen before me. "She's not my girlfriend, sir," I tried to say. "She's my…" But before I could finish, the police officer cut me off. With a hearty laugh, he friendly but roughly placed a hand on my shoulder. "Now, my boy. Don't be embarrassed. I, too, was once a ladies' man back when I was your age," the officer replied.

I bit my lip. (Is that so? That's a shame. You look like an oiled up pig at a picnic race,) I thought to myself. I know it was impolite to judge, but the police man had to be at least 300-something pounds, and I know he probably is a nice guy, but I'm sure he used to be a real lady killer in his day. "Okay. I'll come with you guys. Just let me say goodbye to Amber," I asked.

"Sure, my boy. Knock yourself out. We'll wait out here," The police officer replied, not realizing he had made a bad joke which, considering the setting, actually wasn't too bad. Smiling, I turned around to say goodbye to Amber, but she was already fast asleep from the medicine. Going over, I tucked her in and went out before closing the door. I sighed. Hopefully today, she won't cause any more trouble by herself. Amber was a preppy girly girl and liked to be treated like a princess, but I still loved her attitude and what not. I just hope she'll be okay on her own.

Closing the door behind me, the cops led me to a private room in the hospital. A few nurses and other staff watched us go by and started whispering to each other, no doubt about me. Honestly, I don't understand why they are gossiping about me. There's nothing exciting going on to gossip about, but I guess hags will be hags.

Closing the door behind us, the police officers sat down in some metal chairs while the room went suddenly quiet. "Son, take a seat please," the head police officer said. I did as I was told. Just to make things less uncomfortable for me, the fat man pushed a box of Krispy Cremes towards me. "Want a donut before we start?" He asked, making sure to grab the biggest pastry from the box.

"Um, sure. Thank you." I replied back, taking a donut for myself.

"Son, we may have found out where your friends are. There was a GPS on your friend Peter's phone, and it led us into a small town in the desert before we lost the signal," the police officer said, taking a bite out of his chocolate donut.

My eyes widened. "That's good. That means you can bring them here, and everything will be alright," I replied cheerfully.

The officer then frowned. "I'm afraid that's going to be a problem," he replied back solemnly.

"What? Why? If you know where they are, you should be able to save them, right?" I replied back.

"I know what you're thinking, but that village is dangerous. A lot of people have ended up dead or missing from just stopping by there," the officer explained.

I bit my lip. "Just call for backup, then. Peter and the others could be hurt. You're taking way too long!" I said irritably.

"Calm down, son. Now, we're doing the best we can. Just hold your horses. Don't want to open up those stitches again, now, do you?" The police officer asked calmly.

"No…" I said, trying to calm myself down I sat, slumping into my chair, which earned a few concerned looks from the policemen.

"Now, don't you worry, sport. We will save your friends," the police officer promised. I sighed. I hope he was telling me the truth.

To be continued…


	10. Leaving  the hospital

The hospital allowed me to leave since I didn't have any serious injuries. Plus, the police think I'm an important person important enough to help find the missing students I knew. After we left the hospital. One of the police officers saw his leader get into a separate police car along with his partner. "Oops… Uh… Dave, buddy, make sure Andrew here is comfortable here. I accidentally left my walkie talkie in the waiting room," the young officer's partner said.  
The man named Dave that I was currently with bit his lip, shaking his head. "Jason, I swear you always do this. Make it quick okay? " Dave said.

"I'll be back in a flash. I promise," Jason promised. At that the younger police officer ran back inside the hospital.

There was a big awkward silence between us. The police officer named Dave then opened the car door for me. "Well, you first," Officer Dave replied. I raised an eyebrow. At first, I didn't think nothing of it, when he swiftly but roughly grabbed me by my arm.

''What are you doing? …."

Before I could finish, I heard him whistle. "Hmm. … you know, for a boy, you're very pretty. Very, very pretty…" He trailed off.

That was it! Snatching my arm from him, I ran back to the hospital, accidentally bumping into officer Jason, who was busy looking at his phone, knocking both of us down. The police man gasped, seeing his phone's screen crack as it hit the ground. "Oh, man. My wife is going to kill me!" He groaned.

"I'm really sorry, sir. I promise to pay for it," I offered.

The policeman brushed it off and got up to dust himself off. Lending me a hand he helped me up. "Aww, kid. Don't worry about it. I'll just tell my wife it broke while I was on duty. Put that money towards your college funds," The police officer replied cheerfully. He then frowned noticing the worried expression on my face. "Hey, kid. You look like you've seen a ghost. Is there something wrong?" He asked, concerned.

I turned away from him. "It's nothing. …" I lied.

Officer Jason raised an eyebrow and grunted. He obviously could tell that I was lying to him, and he didn't like it. "Dave said something that made you uncomfortable, did he?" He asked.

I froze, clearly caught lying to him, and he knew something was up. "Yes, he did. He said I was pretty for a boy, and he grabbed me by the arm," I confessed.

That made Officer Jason upset. "Don't go anywhere near him, okay? Just stay with me, and I'll let the chief know you're riding with him instead. I knew something was wrong with Dave from day one, but I'd never thought he'd do something like this," Officer Jason replied. "Come on, kid. Let's go get you to a much safer place. Follow me," he added, taking me to a different police car.

Their chief was busy playing Candy Crush on his phone, unaware of us approaching his car. Officer Jason knocked on his window, trying to get his attention, while startling the older man.

Lowering the window, the officer tried to straighten himself out, acting as if nothing ever happened at all. "How can I help you, boys?" He asked.

"Nothing much, sir. Andrew here would like to ride with you," Officer Jason replied.

The older officer smiled. "Well, sure. You can ride with me, Andrew. That's no problem at all," he replied back cheerfully, unlocking the door. I was let inside the police vehicle at least this guy wasn't a creep, unlike the other one. I shivered, grossed out from the thought of him. After I got in the car, the policeman smiled at me. "By the way, my name's Bob," he said, starting up the car.

"It's nice to meet you, Bob," I replied, feeling pretty comfortable around Bob. For a few minutes, the inside of the car was quiet, other than the sound of the car cruising from the hospital. "Where are we going?" I asked.

"There's a town nearby," Bob replied. "Bit of a spooky town, but with any luck, that's where your missing friends are. With luck, your friends are in one piece." I nodded, having no doubt that they were. Peter was a smart guy, and somehow, Sam was able to talk himself out of whatever trouble he had talked himself into, and Celina could be pretty persuasive with her words.

*Meanwhile, at the inn*

*Celina's p.o.v*

We walked around the inn, searching for Peter with Jennifer. To be honest, I didn't trust her at all, especially with my life. I couldn't put my finger on it, but Jennifer was giving me a very bad vibe. I don't understand why Sam can't feel it, too, but he thinks Jennifer is as harmless as a housefly. (There's something wrong with her. I just know it,) I thought to myself.

"Hey, Celina. You okay? You look a bit worried?" Sam asked. Although I didn't show it outside, I was flattered that he was concerned, but I couldn't, of course, tell how I felt about Jennifer to him, because she was in hearing range and walking right in front of us. Five minutes had passed, and she still wasn't leading us to Peter. "Um… Excuse me, Jennifer. Don't you think we should head back? Peter isn't even here," Sam said.

Jennifer stopped near a door. Opening it, she walked inside, completely ignoring Sam's question. This was the second red flag for me, but Buckethead Sam couldn't get it through his thick skull. "Jessica?" Sam asked.

Still, there was no reply. Feeling freaked out, I tapped on Sam's shoulder trying to signal to him for us to just leave her and find Peter on our own, but still, Sam wouldn't listen! I felt like ripping out my hair. Oh, how annoying he could be… but still, I love him. When Jennifer didn't come out, Sam got worried. "Jennifer, are you okay?" He called out, but still no reply. Suddenly, we heard Jennifer screaming, scaring both of us.

I don't know what overcame Sam, but he immediately kicked the door down, almost dropping me in the process. "Sam, what are you doing?" I asked. Before Sam could respond, his eyes widened in terror. Inside the closet, there stood the ugliest, hairiest centipede monster we had ever seen. Well, the only one I had seen, but it was definitely hairy.

"Celina, that thing ate Jennifer!" Sam said.

I bopped him on the head. "No, Sam! Don't you get it? That thing didn't eat Jennifer. It IS Jennifer!" I replied. Jennifer screamed louder than a banshee before chasing us. "Sam, we need to hide fast!" I yelped.

"You don't have to tell me twice," he replied.

(What is wrong with this town?) I thought to myself. "PETER, WHERE ARE YOU?!" I shouted.


	11. Chapter 11

Holding on tightly to Sam, we both bolted away from this thing that was once a beautiful desk receptionist. I have never been so afraid in my entire life. My heart was beating so fast that, if possible, it would leap out of my chest. I could tell Sam was scared out of his mind as well because he was sweating bullets as if he had run a track marathon, and trust me. Sam is a nice guy and all but the dude is sort of lazy at times. The only time I've ever seen him run was either unwillingly in P.E., or when the pizza delivery guy rings the doorbell.

Jennifer screeched again, causing both of us to wince while running. The only thing I could think about was how are we going to get ourselves out of this. (Did this centipede thing eat Peter? Were we ever going to make it to age 18?) The rest of my thoughts were interrupted by another ear-piercing scream that I'd imagine that could only be heard when you enter the gates of Hell.

"Don't worry, Celina. I'll get us out of this, I promise," Sam assured me.

I tried to cracking a smile even though a demon bug thing was barreling right for us. "You better, knucklehead, because if we die, I'll spend my eternal afterlife nagging you," I replied jokingly.

"I wouldn't mind that," Sam replied, making me blush. "Don't worry. We're not going to die, not on my watch."

Suddenly, the building shook, causing us to fall. Sam hit the ground hard dropping me alongside him. Gunshots rang across the hall, scaring Jennifer away. She tried to burrow underneath the floor to escape the loud noises and gunshots that seemed to be coming from every direction, but was cut short in her endeavor to escape when suddenly a large hooded figure ran towards us. ''YOU KIDS STAY DOWN! DON'T MOVE A MUSCLE!" The man ordered.

(You don't have to tell us twice with that thing nearby. I wouldn't want to trigger it again, and neither would Sam,) I thought to myself. Suddenly, it dawned on me. Why wasn't Sam wasn't saying anything? The fear set in. "Sam. Sam, are you okay?" I asked. Sam was out cold. At least, I hope he was knocked out. He had hit his head from the fall. I cursed silently and crawled over to him, placing his head in my lap. It was nothing too serious, but he was indeed out cold.

Out of everything that happened, he just had to get hurt. Why me?

Jennifer looked back at us, and back at the strange man. She hissed before turning her attention and heading towards our unknown savior, completely losing all interest in us entirely. Thank God. Jennifer was livid. Not only did this man stop her from enjoying a fresh meal, he had injured her as well. Maybe he would taste better than us, instead, and while she was at it, why not tear his limbs off slowly and watch him suffer before eating him? Jennifer screeched so loud that I almost pissed myself. It sounded so horrible, so unholy, way worse than the sound of nails on a chalkboard.

Heading for the man, the monster opened her mouth, exposing millions of razor sharp slimy and yellow teeth. Now, a normal human would run away screaming in terror, but no, not this guy. He must have had balls of steel because even when faced with a monstrosity such as Jennifer, before I could even register anything, I heard a loud slicing noise, and then silence. The man had taken out a strange looking sword that was decorated in strange beads and leather and carved with ancient native American markings. I have never seen such a beautiful sword, and I felt strange just looking at it. Not a bad strange, but just a tingling feeling. Wherever he got that sword from, it was full of power, definitely the supernatural sort.

A spray of purple blood splashed the walls and covering everything, even us, unfortunately. I nearly gagged. This was definitely the worst day ever. Sam was still out cold. I was just grateful that he wasn't awake to witness what just happened. He would have thrown up. Now, I'm not afraid of bugs, but Jennifer was an exception. Cleaning off his weapon, the strange man approached us. "Sorry you had to see that, little lady. My name is Joseph, and you are?" He asked.

The man then politely held out his hand for me to shake but I was hesitant. He wore nothing but an all-black trench coat and hat, and his face was covered by a leather mask as well as his hands. Sensing my discomfort, the man chuckled, the room got awkwardly quiet. I didn't know what was funny, but I narrowed my eyes. The man was 6 ft. 2, not much taller than me. The man took back his hand and smiled. "Don't worry. I understand we hardly know each other. I suppose you won't be coming back home with me tonight," he added.

My eyes widened. I was appalled, and I glared at him. "Look, mister. I'm 16, okay? I'm not legal at all. I appreciate you saving me and my friend, here, but I don't sleep around, especially with a creepy grown man," I snapped. That just made him holler in laughter. I raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny, Mr. Creep?" I asked.

The man stopped laughing and straightened himself out. "I wasn't talking about coming home with me in THAT way, silly girl. I meant to say that this inn isn't safe. Please come home with me to spend the night while we search for a way out of this Godforsaken village," the man corrected me.

I flushed turning away from him. I felt extremely stupid. I just had to jump to conclusions, didn't I? "I'm sorry… Sure, that'll be fine…but my friend here is hurt. Is there a hospital nearby? He hit his head from the earthquake, or whatever that was from earlier."

"A doctor, you say? Well, you're looking at him, young lady. I'm the only doctor this town's got. Well, the only one who didn't die or disappear, that is," Joseph replied back. I was glad that he was at least honest, but hearing about what happened to the town's previous doctors sent shivers down my spine, and not the good ones. "Here, let me carry you and your friend here," Joseph offered.

I tried to protest that I was fine, but trying to walk on this ankle was not a good idea, plus Sam was out cold, and I can't drag him to safety right now, so I agreed. Hopefully, this man didn't try anything funny. As he lifted us both up, I gasped. He lifted us like we weighed nothing more than a grain of salt. This guy, whoever he was, definitely could fend for himself, and he was strong as an ox, too. (Maybe going with him isn't such a bad idea at all,) I thought to myself. After that the three of us left the inn.

*Meanwhile at the hospital *

*Harry Osborn's p.o.v *

I awoke to the sound of people arguing in the background. The world was painfully bright and white, and I squinted my eyes. I groaned. It felt like I was just hit by a bus, and I had a head-splitting headache to go with it. I then realized I was lying in a hospital bed, but where was everybody? Panic started to set in, and I tried to sit up. A nurse that was nearby quickly rushed over and urged me to lay back down. "Sir, please try to relax. Don't try to move. You have a broken arm and a concussion," she said.

"What? Why? Hey, where is everyone? Is Peter okay?" I asked frantically

The doctor came in with some pain killer and my father, who quickly rushed to my side, earning a surprised squeak from the nurse. "Harry! Oh, Harry, you're alive! Oh, son, I'm so sorry for everything. When I got a call from Principal Coulson about what happened, I canceled my meeting with Dave, and had Sebastian drive me all the way here. I'm so happy you're okay."

He hugged me lovingly and pressed his forehead to mine.

The room got awkwardly silent. I loved my father, but memories from earlier ruined the actual moment we had together. Usually, it was rare when he acted like this. It felt good but weird. "Dad, where are the others? Is Peter okay?" I asked.

Dad frowned. ''Harry, we need to talk…" he trailed off. Standing up, he got up to face me. "Son, please don't get upset, but I have bad news."

"What? Dad, what happened where is peter?" I asked again.

My dad cleared his throat. "Harry, the others are outside, but Peter, Celina, and Sam… they couldn't find them. Son, I'm sorry to say this, but Peter may be dead."

Hearing that, I felt like my heart had stopped beating. "No. That isn't true. That can't be true. They have to keep searching."

Before I could finish, Dad had cut me off. "Son, I understand that you are upset, but we can't change what happened. I know you cared for Peter, but he's gone." Dad sobbed. I never saw my father cry before. Seeing him cry made me cry as well. "Oh, son. I'm so sorry. I really. really am…."

*Meanwhile, in the hallway*

*Luke's p.o.v *

The nurses and doctors buzzed around me in shock and concern. "How is he not hurt? That was a terrible crash," one nurse said.

"Maybe it's a miracle. God must have been protecting him," a middle age nurse added.

The doctor disagreed. "This was out of pure luck, ladies. Nothing supernatural had taken place," He assured them.

One nurse rolled her eyes. "Nonsense. He should at least have broken bones. This boy is probably a warlock. He's made a pact with Satan, I tell you!" She replied.

I sighed. It's none of those things, but I definitely wasn't going to let them know that I have powers. While they were busy bickering, I slipped off and entered the room where the others were. Ava and Danny were busy kicking at a vending machine that had ate their dollar. "Hey, guys. How ya feeling?" I asked. The two looked at me, kicking the machine one last time, knocking several drinks out of it. They offered me one. "Thanks."

"No problem so any news about Peter, Sam, and Celina yet?" Ava asked.

"Are they sending out a search party as well for them?" Danny added.

"I don't know if that search party is going to last long…"

Danny raised an eyebrow and Ava crossed her arms giving me a puzzled look. "And why is that?" They both said in unison.

I picked at my nails nervously. "Well, I happened to overhear Harry's father telling him that Peter, Sam, and Celina were probably dead," I confessed.

Danny looked appalled, while Ava's eyes widened. "WHAT?! WHY WOULD HE EVEN SAY SOMETHING LIKE..." Before she could finish shouting, I covered her mouth, cutting her off.

A nurse poked her head in the doorway and looked at us. "Hmmmm, is everything alright in here? I heard shouting," the nurse asked, trying to give us her best sweet middle-age woman tone of voice.

We weren't stupid. We knew she was just here to see what we were doing. "Yes, we're fine. We were just telling each other funny jokes, and Ms. Ayala here got too excited. " I replied back, nudging Ava to go along with my lie. She got the hit and quickly gave the nurse a fake smile. Luckily, the nurse fell for it and walked away. "Gee, way to go, Ava, broadcasting everything with your loud speaker mouth voice," I said sarcastically.

Ava rolled her eyes. ''Look I'm sorry okay I just got all worked up."

"There is a time for rejoicing, and a time for being upset, but at this moment, this is a time to be upset," Danny added.

I sighed. "You guys are right I'm sorry I don't mean to be a jerk, but Osborn shouldn't have told Harry they were dead when he doesn't even have proof. It's not like he was there," I agreed.

They both nodded in agreement. "So, now, what if he tells the cops Pete and the others are dead? We'll never find them," Ava said.

"Young lady that isn't true." Coulson said coming up behind us.

We all jumped. "Principle Coulson, you startled us," Danny squeaked, holding his hand to his chest.

That guy seriously needs to wear a bell or something. because not even O heard him walk in. He scared the bejeepers out of me, too. "I placed a tracking device on Peter and Sam since we can't get through them through the wrist watches, and sorry for scaring you three. I wasn't trying to. Are you all alright? You aren't seriously hurt, are you?" Coulson asked in concern.

We shook our heads no. "Nothing serious, sir. Just a few scrapes and bruises, but nothing serious," Danny replied.

"And I just have a cut on my face, but it's no biggie," Ava added as she touched her cheek. It looked like it hurt, but it wasn't a hair-pulling-agony type of pain.

"I just thought of something. I'm not trying to be rude, sir, but why can't we just reach them through their wrist communicators?" I asked.

''Because something or someone is blocking the signal," Principal Coulson replied.

"How?" Danny asked.

"We don't know, but until then we just have to rely on the trackers," Coulson replied.

"So, what do we do now? Peter and Sam are gone. Should we go look for them?" Danny asked.

"That's why I'm here. You guys go suit up. I'll let the hospital know that you are 'going home,'" Coulson commanded. He handed us are backpacks and left, leaving us to ourselves.

"Alright, you guys. You heard the man. Let's go!" I said, running out.

Danny chuckled and followed close behind. Ava crossed her arms, but smirked playfully. "Alright, big guy. When were you made boss?" She asked, running after us.

"Since today. Now, come on. We have to hurry," I yelled back. A nurse yelped as I almost knocked her over. "Sorry, Ms. Just heading to the bathroom!" I lied.

"Excuse us, miss," Danny said politely the nurse watched as the three of us ran past her.

"Whoa, kids. Where's the fire? Must be eating those darn hot Cheetos the youngsters love. Those nasty things," The nurse chuckled before straightening her dress out.

Meanwhile

*Celina's p.o.v *

We arrived at the strange man's house when suddenly, it dawned on me. "We forgot Peter. We have to go back!" I said as I started to panic What happens if that monster ate him? Or worse, he's lying somewhere, slowly bleeding to death.

Joseph laughed out loud again, making me glare at him. "Oh, that Peter fellow? He's already here. I rescued him a couple of minutes ago. Poor guy he said a centipede demon thing was chasing him. I told him it was just a monster, and that I would handle it. He's a sweet kid, so I told him where I lived and sent him out. Everything is fine," Joseph assured me.

I was relieved. "Thank God. I was so worried."

Joseph, again, waved me off. Taking out his house keys, he fiddled with them until he found the right one. Unlocking the door, Joseph stepped in holding us and called out, "PETER, I'M BACK, AND I BROUGHT YOUR FRIENDS!"

Sure enough, Peter poked his head around the corner and smiled. "Hey, you guys. Glad you're okay… Wait, what happened to Sam?" He asked.

To be continued…


End file.
